I don't think Jones is a given at all. I think that Wilfork, Easley and Siliga are locks, Kelly is a lock if healthy, and Armstead, Jones and Vellano are in the mix for 1-2 remaining slots, with Armstead's health the wild card factor. I think Jones is ahead of Vellano, but I don't think he's anything close to a "lock".

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Easley & probably Wilfork are the only locks at DT, IMHO. Everybody else is playing for their jobs,
including Kelly, Siliga, Jones & the Invisible Armstead. My guess is that 4 DTs, 4 DEs, and Easley
(who could play both) are kept.

How do you have Siliga as a lock but not Jones when they both played the same amount down the stretch last year? I think it's out of the question Vellano passes Jones. Jones had 27 sacks his last 3 years in college, 6 sacks last year as a rookie, and another sack in the playoffs. He's not a starting level player because he can't anchor against the run all game/season long, but he can definitely get to the quarterback. He'd be great in a rotation and in sub packages. Vellano meanwhile is undersized, weak, nonathletic, and untalented.

Why do you have such a low view of Jones?

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I think Siliga is a lock because he played extremely well last year after being signed, and I think that the Pats will want a true NT in addition to Wilfork.

I don't have a low opinion of Jones at all. I like him, and I personally agree with you about Vellano. I'd personally take Jones over Vellano any day. But Reiss or someone did a defensive breakdown that showed that Jones was much weaker in run support than Vellano (I'll try to find it when I have time), and I'm simply entertaining the possibility that BB may see things differently than we do, as has happened in the past. I don't think any of the DTs should be considered a "lock" other than Easley and Wilfork, but again, that doesn't mean that I think poorly of Jones.

Kyed provides some great film breakdown and succinctly identifies the different skillets that the 3 bring to the outside CB position: Ryan is a playmaker and ballhawk, Browner is huge and incredibly physical, and Dennard is a physical "pest". Kyed also identifies the common theme between the 3: lack of pure speed and recovery ability, which can be a liability at times.

I think that Darrell Revis' ability to lock down one side of the field and Devin McCourty's ability to cover a huge territory will be key in limiting the exposure of these 3 guys, and allowing their strengths to be best utilized.

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ESPN's KC Joyner believes that the Pats' secondary is poised to surpass Seattle's this season as the best in the NFL:

A detailed analysis of their relative metrics indicates that replacing Aqib Talib (who signed with the Denver Broncos) with Revis will save the Patriots somewhere in the range of 200 yards this season. Revis is not known as being quite as accomplished a ball hawk as Talib, but that study illustrated how Revis is likely to generate just as many pick chances, and possibly more interceptions, than Talib posted last season.

As significant as that upgrade would be, it likely pales in comparison to the impact Browner will have. Browner had a lower YPA than Sherman in 2012 (6.2 for Browner, 7.4 for Sherman) and should provide a huge coverage improvement over Alfonzo Dennard (9.3 YPA) and Kyle Arrington (9.2 YPA). Browner has nearly as many career interceptions (10) as Dennard and Arrington combined (13) and thus could improve the turnover total as well. Any impact will be delayed until at least Week 5, as Browner will start the season by serving a four-game suspension, but that may not be an issue given that New England begins the season with games against Miami, Minnesota, Oakland and Kansas City -- teams that all have issues in the passing game.

Those factors are likely to open a door for a competitor to pass them, and New England, with its additions of a likely future Hall of Famer and one of Seattle's best cornerbacks, is the team likeliest to vault its way to the top. Don't be surprised if by season's end we are calling the Patriots' secondary the best in the NFL.

I don't know how convincing that argument is, he doesn't really discuss safety play which is where SEA has a huge advantage.

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I agree in general that the Pats have a CB advantage going into this year, and Seattle has a safety advantage. Revis and Sherman are probably the 2 best CBs in the NFL. Maxwell may or may not be better than Browner at this point, but if he is the difference isn't that great. But Dennard, Ryan and Arrington are much more proven depth at this point than Lane and Simon (who I badly wanted the Pats to draft in 2013). That could easily change, especially if Simon develops - he reportedly had an outstanding spring.

At safety, though, it's hard to argue that Seattle doesn't have a huge advantage. As good as McCourty is, his ceiling at this point would be to become Earl Thomas, and Thomas has been playing at that level for several years, and we currently have no one close to Kam Chancellor.

We could've had someone close to Chancellor if instead of using his 5th-rounder in 2010 on a Punter
who couldn't even finish his rookie contract here, Bill could've drafted Reshad Jones, the best Safety
available at that point and one of the better players still available overall.
The other guy I wanted at 150, on the offensive side, was Center (and BC's own) Matt Tennant,
so I'm not going to pat myself on the back too hard here.

We could've had someone close to Chancellor if instead of using his 5th-rounder in 2010 on a Punter
who couldn't even finish his rookie contract here, Bill could've drafted Reshad Jones, the best Safety
available and one of the better players overall available.

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Having him in 2012 would have been nice, but I'm perfectly okay with the Pats not being the team to give a $30M extension with $15M guaranteed to a guy who as of right now is a one year wonder. Dolphins fans were very excited to sign him to that extension after that great 2012 season, but I can't find anybody saying he lived up to that contract last season.

“I think he means a lot to our team. He’s, I’d say, really the guy that the team probably revolves around more than any other player. Not that there aren’t other players that are instrumental in that but I think he touches pretty much everybody, not just the defensive players but all the guys; not just the older guys but the younger guys,” Belichick said in his Friday press conference. “He’s got great work ethic, great presence on the football field and great personality that’s, I’d say, in a very good way professional but also has a good rapport with all the players and the coaches. I think he’s as well respected as any player in the locker room. I’d say one of the best overall team leaders, players, kind of a glue chemistry guy I’d say that I’ve been around.”

High praise indeed, all of which I agree with. However, because he causes so very few TOs, he's just
not an All-Pro-caliber elite LB. (I can still picture him bouncing off Russell Wilson in Seattle 2 years ago.) He's the best we have though, so having him all season (we hope) will certainly help.

Training camp reports indicate Revis is back to top form. Can't wait to see him on the good guys. The other guy I'm curious to see is Will Smith. Hoping Easley and Smith help the pass rush when we go nickel. Don't think they start. But, will have big roles if they can get after the qb.

1. Linebacker Jamie Collins looks primed to make the jump to the rare three-down front-seven defender in the Patriots’ system, and one confirmation of this came in the last two days of practice: When the Patriots worked on punt and kickoff coverage, Collins wasn’t part of the drills. Collins was a core special-teams contributor last year, but with the club planning on a major uptick in his 2014 defensive snaps (25.8 percent last season), initial plans seem to be in place to lighten his special-teams load.

2. Those who hope to see more of 275-pound Patriots linebacker Dont'a Hightower rushing the quarterback off the edge rather than chasing running backs in coverage, as he did often in 2013, would have liked what unfolded in one part of Saturday’s practice. Hightower was part of one-on-one rush drills and he proved to be a handful for left tackle Nate Solder on one repetition. If everyone is healthy come the regular season and Hightower teams with Jerod Mayo and Collins at linebacker, I could envision an on-the-line role for Hightower, playing to the strengths of a hybrid talent who could be a nice chess piece for a defense that likes to alter its fronts regularly.

5. The NFL is apparently going to stress a point of emphasis on defensive holding and illegal contact in 2014, and it will be interesting to see how that potentially affects the Patriots and their revamped secondary. Patriots cornerback Brandon Browner doesn’t think it will, as he noted Saturday that he expects officials to also make a point of emphasis on offensive pass interference. “I think it goes both ways, and I don’t think the game will change too much,” he said. “I’m still going to be aggressive. I’m going to force them to make the call. I’m not going to change my game.” The 6-foot-4, 221-pound Browner , who prides himself as a press corner and is tough to throw over because of his size, is off to a strong start in training camp.

We entered training camp with the thought that the team's evolving D was the key to the team's Super Bowl hopes. The first four practices have reinforced that line of thinking. Assuming relatively good health, it's fair to say this defense has the chance to be one of Bill Belichick's best, and it starts at the cornerback position.

Specific to Revis, one of the things that stands out is how he's seldom in bad position. Belichick has already noted his instincts (comparing him to Rodney Harrison in that area), as there have been times when Revis is breaking on a route before the receiver has done so. At the line of scrimmage, his punch has jarred receivers. His footwork is especially fluid with little wasted movement. His ball skills are obviously solid, too.

In the words of Belichick, I'd say Revis "is similar but different" to when we watched receiver Randy Moss in 2007 training camp. It just looks different -- everything is on a much higher level than you're used to seeing.

Meanwhile, Browner has brought a Harrison-type physical presence to the practice field. On Sunday, he de-cleated rookie running back James White in an 11-on-11 running drill, White landing on his backside as the crowd of 13,000-plus roared along with Browner himself. Longtime Patriots followers might recall how Harrison was buzzing around the field in his first training camp with the team in 2003, his hard-hitting style right on the line between the desired edge/intensity and putting valuable teammates in the cross hairs of friendly fire. That's what we've seen from Browner, who if teamed with Revis could help transform a Patriots' D which ranked 26th in the NFL on third down last season.

“These guys are in their own league,” [LB James] Anderson said. “They can run. They can hit. They can cover. They can play the run. These guys are not your small linebackers. To be as big as they are and as athletic as they are is impressive.”

I hope so. I'm still not sold on Hightower, but I'm suspending doubt for now. And Ken has me sold on Darius Fleming as a potential 5th LB with a skill set that would fit nicely, if he can stay healthy.

With the re-signing of OLB James Morris from Iowa and the activation of Deonte Skinner, there are now 12 LBs in camp. Seems like an unusually large number considering that only 6 are likely to be kept.

With the re-signing of OLB James Morris from Iowa and the activation of Deonte Skinner, there are now 12 LBs in camp. Seems like an unusually large number considering that only 6 are likely to be
kept. Tony Pauline was very high on Morris before his senior season, http://www.rotoworld.com/recent/cfb/132326/james-morris, so perhaps he could at least build his
strength on the PS with 2015 in mind.

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I've been hoping the Pats would re-sign Morris, who was cut for physical reasons. If he's healthy, he's got a nice skill set. I'm hoping that Darius Fleming will seize the 5th LB spot, but I'd love to see Morris on the PS, as you suggest.

Personally, I'm a huge fan of this trade, and I'm rooting hard for Worthy to make it, though I recognize that the kids has had issues and it may not happen. But despite some technique and effort questions, Worthy has real talent. He was mis-used in GB and had injuries. The light may never go on, but if it does and he proves coachable, then he could be a real steal. Combine Joe Vellano's grit and effort with Worthy's talent and you would really have something.